http://www.theoutdoorwire.com/image_archive/2142127.jpg> Keeping your mind on safety when pulling firearms maintenance is critical. A safety list to examine before gun work or a sign -- like this one available from the Gunsite Pro Shop -- helps keep your mind on your objective.

Last week, a news item came in and I posted it in social media. The location was Montgomery County, Penn. According to the story, an off-duty state trooper was disassembling his pistol for cleaning. He pulled the trigger - presumably to put the striker at rest - "but did not realize the gun was loaded, police said." The round struck his pregnant wife. She and the unborn baby were both lost. She was 22 weeks along.

The couple's two children were present at the time.

I'm not trying to place blame here - it's clear to everyone that there are more than two victims in this case. The number of people tortured and grieving in this case is large. I extend condolences to the officer, agency, the family and friends of those victims.

The lesson is -- tragedy is one movement away if you're head is not into the task. The Rules are in place for a reason. The "this is my safety" - while holding your index finger up is strictly crap. Rule 1 - All guns are loaded. Rule 2 - Never let the muzzle cover anything you don't want to destroy - consider perforations and the meaning of "safe direction." Rule 3 - Keep your finger off the trigger (and away from the trigger guard) until the sights are on the target (and you form the intent to FIRE). Rule 4 - Be sure of your target, the backstop, what's behind it - in line with it - on either side of it. Rule 5 - Control your defensive equipment. Avoid the tragedy this young person now endures.

Instead of whining about pistol designs and a requirement to pull a trigger to disassemble the gun, internalize and use the method instructor Chuck Haggard does - he aims in on a target that will absolutely stop a round, and then gets a quality dry fire rep in before he takes the pistol apart. Too many people just jerk that trigger, a very poor habit and a loss of a potential quality training rep.

Print the rules off. Post them in your work area. Re-read them before firearm maintenance. Be careful.

--Rich Grassi